Nightfall:Breakfast With Mom
: So what would compel the three of you to buy a house in a small town like this? : Living in the city wasn't my thing, wanted a changed of scenery. : Well that's certainly a lot of money for three young men to spend. : It was actually my idea to come up here and check the house out... I used to know the guy that owned the place. : I figured you might, since you called him Odie earlier. How did you know him? : He was a good friend in high school... the three of us were actually friends with him. : Shane raises an eyebrow at Yuri as he drinks his coffee again. : So you're from Wildomar? I thought the two of you looked familiar. : We get that a lot. : : It's strange to hear that he's passed. : Yeah... I was, upset to hear it. Not as upset as Mrs. O'Dwyer is, of course... : ...You okay? : Uhh, yes, it's just been a traumatic event. His funeral was Friday... I don't think his mother was ready to let go of him though. : I lost my parents in a car accident a few years ago, it isn't easy losing family like that. : We should talk about something else... I haven't been to Wildomar in awhile, anything big change in the last few years? : A wealthy business woman moved in some years ago and started buying up business and land. No one really knows why she'd build in a place like Elsinore and Wildomar. She even bought the old Totenkopf estate, or so I've heard. Waitress: I also just wanted to remind the four of you that we're having our annual pancake festival here at Darcy's Diner! She smiles. Breakfast with all you can eat pancakes all day long! Shane: Sounds great. He looks at Nemo and Yuri, then back tot he waitress. We'll probably be here. Waitress: She smiles. Enjoy. She looks at Shane's empty mug. And I'll be right back with some more coffee. Shane: Thanks. The waitress walks away and he grabs his fork, digging into his eggs and mashed potatoes. Clara: She looks to Yuri. She's really stimulated the market in the area. I bet if you went back there now you wouldn't even recognize it. Yuri: He remembers seeing the large wall around the Prince's area and all the new houses and businesses that sprung up since a few years ago. I'll have to go back and visit sometime. Clara: Well you couldn't be farther from it now. She smiles and starts eating. She has a simple plate of eggs and bacon. Nemo: There's a good feeling that comes with leaving everything behind, and starting over. He smiles a little, but it fades and he looks down at his plate. All he ordered was French toast and nothing else. Yuri: He looks down at his plate, he ordered scrambled eggs and hash browns. Not wanting his food to get cold he grabs his fork. Trent: Leaving everything behind and starting over... Is that it? Yuri: He lowers his fork and slowly looks to the side, his old friend sitting behind him now. Trent: You think you can move all the way out here and forget everything that happened?! Yuri: He jumps a little when the table shakes. This is the first time in weeks he's seen him again. Nemo: He looks at Yuri, then up and around the space around Yuri, having an idea of what just happened. Waitress: Coffee? No one noticed her walking up, but it breaks the silence. Shane: Please. He looks from Yuri to the waitress and holds out his cup and she starts to fill it. Waitress: How's everything? Nemo: He looks at Yuri a moment longer. Clara: It's great, thank you. She smiles. Waitress: Wonderful. She walks away. Yuri: He puts his fork back down and grabs his water, taking a long drink. Clara: Are you alright? Shane: He has a condition. He looks to Yuri. He doesn't like to talk about it. He goes back to eating. Clara: Oh... I'm sorry. Nemo: So anything else happen in Wildomar recently? Clara: Umm... I haven't been able to keep up with the gossip It's difficult working and travelling, and trying to. She goes back to eating. Yuri: He looks at Shane for a moment, a little irked about his comment before he looks back to the empty seat beside him. Trent isn't there anymore. He looks relieved that's he gone and goes back to listening to his mom, just catching that she's been traveling a lot lately. It reminds him of dad. How's dad doing? Nemo: He slowly looks at Yuri, setting his fork down. Shane: He just stares at him. Clara: I'm sorry, what? She seems confused. Yuri: He realizes the mistake he made and looks towards Nemo. I was just asking my brother how our dad's been. He sees him a lot more than I do. Nemo: He's been fine. Still travels a lot. He shakes his head a little. I guess you reminded us of him. He smiles a little. Clara: Oh... She looks at Yuri for a moment longer then goes back to her plate. It's strangest thing, the two of you remind me so much of another two boys I knew. She grabs a piece of bacon and bites a piece off of it. What does your father do? She looks at Yuri. Yuri: He... works for a trucking company. He tries not to look at Shane because he knows he's looking at him again. He looks like he's calming down again but he still looks a little uneasy, like he's expecting something else bad to happen at any moment. Shane: His shoulders slouch slightly as he takes a long drink from his coffee. Clara: And your mother? She looks at Nemo. Nemo: She died... Kind of-It's complicated. He nods a little. Clara: ...Oh... His response seems to confuse her. Shane: He rolls his eyes a little and sets down his coffee. As he does his cellphone starts ringing. He picks it up, not recognizing the number. Hello? He looks over at Nemo. ...Who is this? He makes a weird expression, then after a moment he holds the phone out to Nemo. Whoever it is, it's for you I guess. Nemo: He takes the phone. Hello? After a moment he looks at Yuri and starts sliding to the right, Shane stands up so he can get out. He walks away a few feet and Shane sits back down. Shane: He looks at Yuri. I think something might've come up. He looks back to Clara. Clara: Oh, alright, I'll just go grab the check. She stands up and heads towards the register, walking passed Nemo. Nemo: Just as she walks passed him he hangs up and quickly runs over to the table, speaking in low voice. That was Natalya, she wants to know why we're all the way up here, talking to mom. He looks at Yuri. Yuri: He's not even surprised anymore that it was Natalya that called him but he still doesn't look happy about it. ...What did you tell her? Nemo: I just said I was buying a house up here. He shrugs slightly. You know I can't lie. Shane: He sighs in annoyance and looks around for Chris, or someone else he would recognize. Unbelievable, why the hell does she care? He turns and looks out the window, out at the street. He stands up slightly. Yuri: He looks at Nemo slowly as he realizes something. Nemo: If she knows we're meeting with her then she might be nearby. He looks at Shane, then Yuri. Clara: She walks up to the table. Well thanks for everything, I didn't think selling the house would go so well. You're certainly not the demographic that would normally buy it. She sounds relieved and happy. Shane: Well I'm glad we did business. If you'll excuse us though, I actually have a job interview outside of town that I have to be getting to. Clara: Oh of course, of course. I'm staying at the Cold Springs Motel in town if you have any more questions, when the paperwork goes through I'll call you and I might have a few more things for you to sign. Shane: That's great, thanks. He smiles and stands up, shaking her hand. See you soon then. Clara: She waves at them, turns away, then stops, turning to look at Yuri. I never got your names, actually. Yuri: He looks away from Nemo, looking back to his mom. Not wanting to use one of his old friend's names he just uses a name she shouldn't remember him saying. Billy. Nemo: Nemo. Clara: She smirks a little. Billy and Nemo? Alright, well, thanks for everything. See you soon. She waves and strings her purse up over her shoulder, walking away. Nemo: He lets out an annoyed sigh. Well there goes the neighborhood. He looks outside, watching their mom walk to her car. As she drives away a black Rolls Royce pulls up next to the diner. It just sits there. He gulps slightly. Yuri: He looks out the window towards the expensive looking car. That isn't her, is it? Nemo: You should take off your bandana. He doesn't look amused. If she sees you with it she'll know you were the one that broke in. Yuri: Yeah... He backs away from the window, not wanting his mom to recognize him while she's still getting to her car. When he feels it's safe he takes off the bandana. Shane: Let's go out and see what the hell she wants. He grabs his coat off the seat and heads towards the door. Nemo: He turns and follows Shane closely as they walk out of the diner and around to the parking lot. Yuri: He stays beside Nemo as the three of them walk through the parking lot towards the black car. The door opens, and Natalya steps out, wearing a long black dress that shimmers silver in the foggy morning light. Natalya: She looks around the town for a moment, then to the three boys walking towards her. Shane immediately freezes in place and Nemo bumps into him. Shane: He lets out a quiet sigh as he seems to be unable to move. Nemo: He looks from Shane to Natalya. Knock it off already! Natalya: What is your business here with Ms. Vera? She looks from Shane and he takes a gasping breath. Yuri: We're buying Odie's house... Why do you care if I talk to my mom? Natalya: She lets out a long sigh, glaring at Yuri. She glides forwards. News of your death was greatly exaggerated and woefully inaccurate, though I expected as much. Yuri: He feels his body stop moving and it suddenly gets harder to breathe, it makes him feel like he's about get attacked by her. Before she can get too close several bladed chains begin to rise out of the shadows between him and Natalya. Natalya: She breaks the glare and looks down at the chains. Why is it that you or your brother have been so very intrusive into my time this passed month? She narrows her yellow-green eyes. Yuri: He takes a step back, a little out of breath after feeling like someone was choking him a little. Why are you following my mom around... Natalya: It's in my interest to personally see to her safety. She glares at Nemo, who is already looking away from her, then back to Shane. Shane: ...We... We're buying a hhh... House. He's really trying to speak, pushing through her glare as he defiantly stares back into her eyes. Go the fuck... Away. Yuri: He turns to look towards her car. Let him go, Natalya... A single black blade slowly sinks out from the car's ceiling, pointing directly towards the driver. Natalya: I've no reason to let any of you go. She looks at Yuri. Not until Mrs. Vera has returned home, safely. Yuri: He keeps looking towards her car, not wanting to risk her paralyzing him again. The blade moves closer to the driver. Why are you keeping her safe... Natalya: I've no reason to afford you answers. She reaches forwards and grabs Yuri's shoulder in a vice-like grip. Yuri: He feels her super human strength squeezing his shoulder, it hurts more than it looks. Sh..Shane... Nemo... move! He summons ten black chains, each of them stabbing into the side of the Rolls Royce. They tug on the car with incredible strength before it rolls on its side, the chains immediately sinking back into the ground and more replacing them closer to Natalya. They stab into the side of the car again and pull it hard, rolling the car into her back. Natalya: She turns and looks at her car. Shane: He grabs Nemo and practically carries him as he quickly moves away. As Natalya turns around the roof of the car slams down onto her, both the strength of his chains rolling it so fast and the weight of the car strong enough to knock her down and away from him. The car sits there for a moment, before an older woman crawls out of the broken window. She looks heavily shaken and looks around, like she's in shock, and brushes some small shards of glass off of her shoulder as she trembles lightly. It looks like she has a few scratches on her face. Just as she looks like she's figuring out what happened there's a loud creaking groan, and she turns around to see the Rolls Royce suddenly rip in half, the back end of it rolling over the ground. Natalya: She slowly stands up, looking somehow much taller than she did a moment ago. She's facing away from Yuri, and he watches her put her hand to the back of her neck, there's a loud popping sound as she seems to shove one of her vertebrae back into place. She leans slightly and her back pops loudly, then slowly starts to turn and look to Yuri, her golden-silver hair hanging over her face, only one of her green-yellow eyes looking out at him. The pupil condenses until it's a thin vertical slit, like a serpent's eye. Yuri: He's already running back to Shane and Nemo, but turns when he hears Natalya ripping her car apart. Knowing that she's gonna be more than pissed at him he pulls the two pieces of her car in front of her with chains before she can glide after him. With the small distraction he quickly climbs and jumps into the back of the Shane's truck. Go! Don't even look back just go! Shane: He's already started the truck, and immediately drives. Even Natalya steps out of the way of the large truck as it rushes passed her and turns out onto the street. Fucking knew something like this was going to happen! Nemo: It's fine, she doesn't know where we're staying. Shane: She knows where we're going to LIVE! Yuri: He watches until Natalya's out of sight before he sighs and sits down on his sleeping bag. Fuck... After a moment he knocks on the back window of the truck. Nemo: He opens it and looks at Yuri, pulling down his bandana. That could've went better. He looks at Yuri nervously. Yuri: I wasn't expecting her to rip the car in two. He shakes his head, still shaken up after she grabbed him. We don't have a choice now, we have to stay at the motel until she leaves town... Nemo: He sighs and turns away. It's not her I'm worried about... Yuri: He looks back at Nemo, sitting up a bit. Who else do we have to worry about? About an hour later... After a brief argument between Shane and Nemo about Yuri and what he did, Nemo has more-or-less convinced Shane that everything will be fine, and Shane has left for his job interview in a bad mood. The large U-Haul Trailer is sitting in the parking lot of the Wake Motel, and Nemo has it open, backing his blue motorbike down a short ramp. Nemo: He looks back and backs the bike out onto the asphalt. It's a nice bike, but nothing extremely expensive, and the paint is a little worn. Haven't used this in almost a year. He kicks the stand into place and gets off of it. Yuri: He's standing behind Nemo, looking his old motorbike over before he looks back at him. We'll have an easier time getting around once you set up those teleporters. Nemo: Yeah. The only problem is... He pulls out one of his old pendants from his jacket pocket. These aren't going to last forever, and I can't make more. He shrugs a little. Don't tell Shane I said this, but have no demonic powers is fucking terrible. He shakes his head and puts it back into his pocket. I went from being able to bend steel and survive being gutted, to falling into basements and nearly breaking my back... Yuri: He thinks back to the fight they had in the park. Yeah... I remember how strong you were. What about that glow in the dark skeleton mode you had? Nemo: Gemini-only I guess. He shrugs. I can still do alchemy and stuff, but that's not going to be useful in a fight I don't know of ahead of time. Yuri: He sits down on the trailer's floor, thinking about how Nemo can get some demonic fight back in him. Well... you're a warlock, aren't you? How did the Prince get all his powers? Nemo: He was part fairy, so he already had magic in his blood right from the start. He turns and looks at his bike, kind of inspecting it. Yuri: He was part- what? Nemo: You know, a fairy, fae, whatever. He turns and looks back at Yuri and shrugs. That's why he was so tall and skinny I think. Yuri: He smirks and shakes his head. Oh Eddie... you're so lucky you're dead. Nemo: I liked him. Was kinda... Annoyed that you killed him... Twice. He shakes his head a little. Not that he was really the same Prince I knew I guess... He walks around his bike and up the ramp into the U-Haul. Yuri: He raises an eyebrow at Nemo. Did you forget the part where he was trying to kill us?... Nemo: Oh c'mon. He was only trying to kill you a little bit... He pulls a large heavy case out from the U-Haul and slowly carries it down the ramp. Yuri: Yeah, and I was only trying to drive back onto the road... He stands up and takes a few steps away from the trailer before he takes a look around the parking lot and the surrounding trees. Nemo: Well, doesn't matter, it is what it is. I don't think I'd have wanted to end up his slave anymore than the Druaght. He sets the case down on the pavement and opens it, there's a bunch of equipment inside. Time to set up some early warning glyphs, in case Natty shows up. He grabs a blue piece of oily looking chalk and looks up at Yuri with a smile. Yuri: He looks back at Nemo for a second before looking back towards the forest. That's not gonna help, Nemo. I need at least one of you helping me fight her off if she shows up again. He turns and walks up to Nemo, grabbing his shirt and pulling him to his motel room. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Nemo: Help fighting her? I don't think I could've fought her even at my full power though! He holds up the chalk. What are you gonna do? Yuri: He lets go of his shirt once they're back in Nemo's room. Without saying anything he kicks his shoes off and lays down on his bed. You probably weren't around when it happened but I know a way to make someone stronger. He motions for him to lay down on the other side of the bed. Nemo: He looks at the bed strangely. ...Yeah? He looks to Yuri, his voice sounding a bit unsure. Yuri: It doesn't involve any deals or pacts... He lays back and looks up the ceiling. Nemo: He takes off his boots, then gets on the bed and lays down, looking up at the ceiling. ...So what are we doing then? Yuri: First... we need to go Tartarus. He takes a deep breath and slowly exhales. How fast can you run? Nemo: He sighs. Not very fast anymore. He takes a slow breath and closes his eyes. Yuri: He grabs Nemo's hand and closes his eyes. Don't stop running... Nemo: Don't tell me we're going to have to escape from that skeleton with the sword... He quietly murmurs to himself. I hate that guy... [https://youtu.be/_7KSHyF_X2M Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Maniax - Talk] As the twins open their eyes they suddenly find themselves falling two feet, down onto the hard dirt below. The landscape around each of them is bleak, war-torn and the skies are full of chaotic energies. It's the first floor of Tartarus. Before either of them can even break into a run they feel the ground below them begin to shake. Emir: His voice can be heard in front of them but he's nowhere in sight. I no longer feel his presence within you... and yet another devil has left his mark on you. Yuri: He pushes Nemo away from him and starts backing away, trying to figure out where he is. Slow day, Emir? I thought I'd see you fighting someone else here again. Emir: The ground in front of Yuri swells up with holy energy until the fiend appears. The burnt skeleton draped in white robes with a sword at his side. He's looking away from Yuri and even though he only has a skeletal face Yuri can somehow tell that he's smiling. Yuri: He gulps and looks back to see if Nemo is still running away before quickly looking back at Emir. Nemo: He's running as fast as he can in the opposite direction. Just passing through! Emir: He turns his head to look at Yuri, his black hollow eyes staring at him. Stand your ground. Yuri: You're using some of the best Angel Room items... running is the only choice I have. He glances down at his sandals, knowing Emir can dash in a beam of light just like in the game. Just let me go, we're just here to see a friend... Emir: He draws his sword. Pull on the monster's chains... raise your sword and fight me! [https://youtu.be/_ZvwmBNkR8w Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Maniax - Majin] Yuri: He shakes his head slowly. I don't think so... He turns invisible and runs for it, quickly following Nemo through the first floor. Nemo: He keeps running, looking back for Yuri. Yuri?! Emir: Chaos or Shadow, no devil can hide you from me... He raises his sword in Yuri's direction, a holy nova exploding from his body, sending a wall of light in every direction around him. Anything the light touches is revealed to him, all illusions shatter away. Yuri: He looks back at the wall of light and immediately jumps behind a massive rock, the holy rays of light barely missing him as it shoots past the rock. Sh-shit! Once the light passes him he gets back up and keeps running as fast as he can. Emir: He looks around before dashing forward in Nemo's direction but still doesn't see Yuri anywhere. No... His hollows eyes dart around the hellish landscape before he sees the tunnel etrance in the distance. NO!! Another holy nova immediately explodes from his body. It moves across the landscape even faster than before and slams into Yuri, knocking him out of invisibility. Yuri: He falls and hits the ground hard, he groans in pain and tries getting back up. With the entrance to the second floor only a few yards away he gets back to his feet and tries walking forward, his adrenaline keeping him going. Just as he's about to reach the tunnel he sees something in the corner of his eye. There's a single tiny ray of concentrated light appearing on his shoulder. Emir: His feather parts the sky and sends a massive of pillar of light down onto Yuri. The powerful light breaks through the ground, sundering and shaking the land. Massive chunks of rock start falling down from the tunnel's ceiling piling up into a massive blockade. Yuri: Through the heavy dust cloud he can be seen falling away from the collapsing tunnel entrance, he's holding onto one of his black chains as it drags him away from the falling rocks. After a moment he lands near Nemo. Nemo: He looks at Yuri for a second before reaching out a hand to help him up. You know I think it would've been safer to find Kitty and ask him to help us get down here. He helps his brother up. You alright? Yuri: Yeah... When he gets to his feet he looks at his shoulder, part of his shirt and hoodie having been burnt off by holy light. Part of the skin underneath looks a little burnt too. He can't help but to chuckle painfully. Fuck, that hurts... Nemo: He shakes his head. At least you still have superhealing. He shrugs and smiles a little, glad that Yuri is ok. Yuri: He smiles and slowly walks to one of the many dark pits in the tunnel, they almost all look bottomless. One of the closer ones has a long rope that leads down deeper into Tartarus. You know what... Fuck ropes. He lowers a black chain from the ceiling and grabs onto it. Get on... we'll take the elevator. Nemo: He grins at Yuri and walks over to him. About fifteen minutes later the twins finally make their way to a large dungeon with a massive stone platform near the back wall. It's the same place the old group visited before when they went to retrieve Nemo's Merchandice. Yuri: He keeps near Nemo, having been using his help to walk most of the way here after hurting his ankle from falling. I guess it's your first time here... Nemo: I think I've been here before. At least, in this general area. He looks around for a moment. One of Belxephon's cronies was around here somewhere, back in the day. Yuri: Yeah... Cinnamon, but after I sent Belxephon back to hell he packed up and left. He walks up to the stone wall where his shop used to be. He reaches out and pulls the cardboard cutout away from the wall, revealing his abandoned shop. Since he's not coming back I thought I'd use this nice little spot to hide a few things. Nemo: He looks around the small shop as he walks in, raising an eyebrow and then turning to look at Yuri. Like what? Yuri: He goes behind the small counter and pulls out a massive glass container full to the brim with some type of black liquid, it smells familiar to Nemo. He smiles, wondering if Nemo knows what it is. Nemo: Demon blood? He walks up and looks at it. Smells a little old... He pauses. And kinda familiar. Yuri: You can thank Belxephon... it came from his carcass. He places the container down on the counter and looks down into it. When I came down here to try and save Lucas... The Gemini was eating him limb from limb. I got ahold of his torso before he could finish him off. Nemo: Which half is this from? I'm guessing it's Lucas's half? He looks into the container. Yuri: He nods. Nemo: Hmm... He can see his own faint reflection in the black demonic liquid. Well if I drank this I'd probably be back to my old self... With that in mind, drinking all of it would probably be a bad idea... He lets out a quiet sigh, which causes the liquid in the contain to ripple a little. Shane's gonna be so pissed... Yuri: Maybe we can get him to drink some too... Nemo: He looks up at Yuri sternly. Shane's driven to being a normal person after what happened to him. He looks back down at the blood. If he drank any of this he'd probably turn into Leo 2.0, and do a lot of stupid things to get rid of it... Yuri: He sits on the counter and looks at him. What are you gonna do? Nemo: He lets out a long groan. I just got rid of my demon powers after ten years, and now I'm gonna go right back into this... He shakes his head. Oh well... He grabs the sides of the glass and lifts it to his face. His nose twitches a little at the smell, though it's familiar to him, it still stinks. I don't like being fully human anyway... It's boring... He brings it to his mouth and starts to drink it in big gulps. He winces, as it tastes awful, like rotten eggs mixed with vinegar. After a few seconds, with nearly half the glass drained he lets go and puts is back on the counter. He turns away from Yuri can coughs loudly, bending over a little, he stands back up and wipes his mouth. Delicious. He shrugs at Yuri, his lips stained black by the liquid. After a moment his eyes go wide. Oh man I feel it. He jitters a little and then shakes his hands out.